EVENT PROLOGUE: Sheherezade, the medieval storyteller, told stories for 1001 nights in order to save her life from the cruel sultan Sharyar, who married a virgin every night and had her killed next morning. Only Sheherezade’s stories could stop him from his murderous insanity. The 1001 Nights Storytelling Festival and its participants are out to prove that the 21st century is the new Oral Century. They believe that New Orleans and Transylvania are the places where Sheherezade 2 is going to offer a new model for survival through storytelling. The events will center entirely on the human voice and imagination.

The Transylvanians will unveil sequels to the 1001 Nights in English translation, some of them interpreted by New Orleans actors, surprise musicians and dancers, while the New Orleanians will unveil accounts of unmerciful fabulosity.

Also featured in this festival — A meeting of Two-Continent Imaginations: Corin Braga, founder of The Center For Imagination Studies from Cluj, Transylvania, and Confessor Emeritus of Abomination and founder of The New Orleans School for the Imagination Dave Brinks joined by collaborateurs Andrei Codrescu and Bill Lavender.

•AN ENCOUNTER between the Center for Imagination Studies from TRANSYLVANIA and its founder Corin Braga, and the NEW ORLEANS School for the Imagination, represented by Dave Brinks, Andrei Codrescu, and Bill Lavender.

•A writing workshop on collaborative poetry will precede the discussions.

THE UNIVERSITY OF NEW ORLEANS (UNO)TRAC building, Room 103

Directions: Take Elysian Fields toward Lake Ponchartrain. Turn left on Leon C. Simon, go to thenext traffic light (St. Anthony Street) and turn right. Turn into first parking lot on the left. TRAC is the3-story building at the end of the parking lot. Park in a spot marked by white lines only; retrieve yourparking pass and put it on your dashboard.

This festival is made possible by the Romanian Cultural Institute in New York and the Gold Mine Saloon, in collaboration with the University of New Orleans (UNO) – UNO Press and the Division of International Education.